Customer Journey Video Mapping: Content Strategy Guide | Mad Witch
Discover how to create targeted video content for each stage of your customer journey. Our guide helps Thames Valley businesses boost engagement and conversion rates.
The One-Video Mistake Most Businesses Make
Marketing teams often invest substantial resources into creating a company video, only to find it's not generating the leads or engagement they expected. Upon closer inspection, the problem often becomes clear: the video is trying to do everything at once.
A typical scenario involves a three-minute video attempting to introduce the company, explain complex products, showcase testimonials, and push for sales—all in one go. While the video might be technically well-produced, it's attempting to serve too many masters at once.
This is a common challenge across businesses of all sizes. Many create one general video and expect it to work equally well for someone who's never heard of their company and someone who's on the verge of making a purchase. In reality, these audiences need very different things.
Understanding the Customer Journey
Customers don't go from stranger to loyal advocate in one giant leap. They move through distinct stages, each with different questions, concerns, and needs:
• Awareness Stage: "I have a problem and I'm looking for solutions" • Consideration Stage: "I'm comparing different possible solutions" • Decision Stage: "I'm deciding which specific solution to choose" • Retention Stage: "I'm using the solution and determining my ongoing relationship with the provider"
The video content that resonates at each of these stages differs dramatically. Let's explore what works where.
Awareness Stage Videos: Creating That First Connection
Picture someone who's just beginning to realise they have a problem that needs solving. They might not even know solutions like yours exist yet. At this stage, they're not ready for a detailed product walkthrough or client testimonials about implementation success.
A financial services firm could transform their approach to awareness stage content by avoiding immediate discussion of their services. Instead, they might create a series of short, problem-focused videos highlighting the challenges their potential clients face.
Effective awareness stage videos typically:
• Focus on the problem rather than your solution • Educate viewers about issues relevant to your industry • Keep branding subtle and sales pitches minimal • Stay under 90 seconds to maximise completion rates • End with a soft call-to-action to learn more
These videos work brilliantly as social media content and website entry points. They're designed not to sell, but to build connection through shared understanding of a problem.
Consideration Stage Videos: Showcasing Your Approach
By the consideration stage, your potential customer knows they have a problem and is actively evaluating different solutions. This is where you can start introducing your company's unique approach.
Software companies could see tremendous success with consideration stage videos that don't focus directly on their products, but instead on their methodology. These videos could demonstrate their distinctive approach to solving the customer's problem, establishing expertise without diving into product specifics.
Effective consideration stage videos typically include:
• Explanations of different approaches to solving the relevant problem • Thought leadership content showcasing your expertise • "How we're different" messaging that differentiates your approach • Educational content that helps prospects evaluate solutions intelligently • Behind-the-scenes glimpses into your company culture and values
These videos help potential customers understand not just what you sell, but how you think and work—critical factors in building preference during the consideration phase.
Decision Stage Videos: Making the Final Case
When prospects reach the decision stage, they're comparing specific offerings and providers. Now's the time for more detailed product information and direct comparisons to alternatives.
A manufacturing business might struggle with a lengthy sales cycle until they develop decision stage videos that address the specific concerns holding prospects back from signing. These objection-handling videos could directly tackle common hesitations, with relevant examples showing how similar concerns were addressed successfully.
Effective decision stage videos include:
• Detailed product demonstrations showing key features in action • Specific examples addressing common objections or concerns • Implementation or onboarding explanations that reduce fear of change • Concrete examples of results and ROI that could be achieved • Clear, direct calls-to-action for next steps
These videos should make the path forward clear and comfortable, removing any final obstacles to purchase.
Retention Stage Videos: Building Lasting Relationships
The customer journey doesn't end at purchase. Smart companies continue to nurture relationships with videos designed specifically for existing customers.
Professional services firms in the Thames Valley could transform their client retention rates with a series of onboarding and advanced usage videos. These would make clients feel supported throughout their relationship, not just during the sales process.
Effective retention stage videos include:
• Onboarding and tutorial content that ensures successful implementation • Advanced feature exploration for established users • Company updates and roadmap information • Regular check-ins and valuable industry insights • Client appreciation content that makes customers feel valued
These videos demonstrate ongoing commitment to customer success, turning one-time buyers into long-term advocates.
Creating Your Customer Journey Video Strategy
Next time you're planning video content, resist the temptation to create a single "do-everything" video. Instead, map out your customer journey and identify the critical moments where video could help move prospects to the next stage.
Start with one stage that represents your biggest current opportunity or challenge—you don't need to create everything at once. Even having dedicated awareness and decision stage videos puts you ahead of most competitors who are still relying on a one-size-fits-all approach.
Companies that replace their single company video with targeted content for different journey stages often see dramatically improved engagement metrics. More importantly, sales conversations typically become more productive because prospects arrive better informed about specific aspects of the offering.
The right video at the right time can transform your marketing results. It's not about creating more video—it's about creating smarter video that meets your audience exactly where they are in their journey.
Want to discuss how targeted video content could support your customer journey? Get in touch for a friendly chat about your specific challenges and opportunities.
Beyond Views: Measuring Real ROI from Your Business Videos
Meta Title: "Video ROI Guide: Measuring Business Impact Beyond Views | Mad Witch"
Meta Description: "Learn how to measure the true ROI of your video content. Our guide helps Thames Valley businesses track meaningful metrics that demonstrate real business value."
The Vanity Metrics Trap
"Our video got 10,000 views!" It's a statement often heard in marketing meetings, typically followed by appreciative nods. Yet when the question arises about what those views actually did for the business, the conversation often becomes more challenging.
This scenario plays out regularly in businesses throughout the Thames Valley. There's frequently an enthusiasm about video metrics—views, likes, shares—without a clear understanding of how these numbers translate to business results. While 10,000 views sounds impressive, the real question is: did those views contribute to business growth?
This disconnect between video activity and business impact creates a problematic situation where companies continue investing in video content without knowing if it's actually working. Let's explore how to move beyond vanity metrics to measure what really matters.
Setting Clear Objectives: The Foundation of Meaningful Measurement
Every effective video strategy begins with clear objectives. Without knowing what you want your video to achieve, you can't properly measure its success.
A software company creating quarterly product update videos might initially state their goal as "keeping customers informed." While that's a purpose, it's not a measurable objective.
More refined objectives might include:
• Reducing support tickets about new features by 20% • Increasing usage of new features by 35% within 30 days of release • Improving customer retention rates by 5%
With specific objectives established, the videos can be designed to achieve these goals with appropriate measurement systems in place.
Different video types naturally have different objectives:
• Brand awareness videos might focus on reaching new audience segments • Product demonstrations should generate qualified leads or sales • Customer testimonials need to overcome objections and build trust • Internal training videos should improve employee performance or reduce errors
The key is being specific about what success looks like before starting production.
Essential Metrics Based on Video Goals
Once clear objectives are established, relevant metrics can be identified for tracking. Here's a framework to match metrics to common video goals:
For Lead Generation Videos
A manufacturing business investing in explainer videos would benefit from tracking:
• Conversion rate: Percentage of viewers who completed the desired action after watching • Cost per lead: Total video investment divided by number of leads generated • Lead quality: Average deal size or conversion rate of video-generated leads • Attribution data: How the video fits into the broader conversion path
These metrics could reveal that videos are generating higher quality leads than other channels, even if the volume is lower. This insight might justify increasing investment in video rather than reducing it.
For Brand Building Videos
For content aimed at building awareness and affinity, different metrics matter:
• Audience retention: How much of your video people actually watch (more important than view count) • Brand recall: Surveying viewers about their memory of your brand/message • Sentiment analysis: The tone of comments and social sharing • Search volume increases: Growth in branded search terms after video campaigns
Retention analysis might show viewers dropping off whenever specific messaging is used. This insight could help refine communication style, resulting in dramatically improved engagement.
For Customer Education Videos
A software company creating product tutorial videos would benefit from tracking:
• Support ticket reduction: Decrease in help requests for covered topics • Product usage metrics: Increased engagement with featured features • Customer satisfaction scores: Improvements in relevant CSAT categories • Time to value: How quickly new users reached proficiency
The data might show a significant reduction in basic support queries after implementing tutorial videos, freeing their support team to focus on more complex customer needs.
Simple Analytics Tools Any Business Can Use
Enterprise-level tools aren't necessary to measure video effectiveness. Here are accessible options that Thames Valley businesses could use:
• YouTube Analytics and Vimeo Analytics: Provide basic viewer behavior data for hosted videos • Google Analytics: Track how videos impact website behavior and conversions • HotJar: Heat mapping to see how videos affect page interaction patterns • SurveyMonkey or Typeform: Simple tools for gathering viewer feedback • HubSpot or similar CRM: Track how video engagement correlates with lead progression
Calculating Actual Return on Investment
Moving from metrics to ROI requires connecting video performance to financial outcomes. Here's a recommended approach:
-
Identify the financial value of your objectives: • What's the average value of a lead or sale? • What's the cost saving of reduced support tickets? • What's the value of improved retention rates?
-
Calculate total investment: • Production costs (internal or external) • Distribution costs (paid promotion, hosting) • Time costs for planning and management
-
Determine attribution method: • Direct attribution for clear conversion paths • Multi-touch attribution for more complex journeys • Incremental measurement for brand campaigns
-
Calculate ROI: (Value Generated - Investment) / Investment × 100
A retail business could calculate ROI on their product demonstration videos by tracking sales that occurred directly after video views. A clear demonstration of value could secure video marketing budget for future projects.
Using Performance Data to Improve Future Content
The most valuable aspect of proper measurement isn't just justifying video investment—it's gathering insights to make future videos even more effective.
A technology company might discover through careful analysis that:
• Videos under 90 seconds have twice the completion rate of longer videos • Customer story videos outperform product features videos for conversion • Videos released on Tuesday mornings receive the highest engagement • Including a specific type of call-to-action increases click-through rates significantly
These insights could directly inform future video strategy, creating a continuous improvement cycle that steadily increases performance.
Creating Your Measurement Framework
Start by examining your current approach to video measurement. Are you tracking metrics that actually matter to your business, or just counting views and likes? Have you established clear objectives for each video you produce?
Develop a simple measurement framework that: • Defines success before production begins • Tracks metrics aligned with your specific objectives • Connects video performance to business outcomes • Provides actionable insights for future content
Remember, effective measurement doesn't have to be complicated. Even basic tracking focused on business outcomes will put you ahead of most companies still trapped in the vanity metrics game.
Want to discuss how to measure the real impact of your video content? Let's talk about creating a custom measurement framework for your specific business goals.